Judges trim attorney fees award in remap lawsuit

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) – Three federal judges have reduced the attorney fees and expenses that Kansas must cover for parties in a lawsuit stemming from the Legislature’s failure last year to redraw the state’s political boundaries.

The new total in an order Thursday was about $379,000, or almost $9,600 less than the $389,000 that Kansas was ordered to pay in April.

The judges issued their new order after the Kansas attorney general’s office pointed out incorrect figures in the previous order spelling out the amount awarded to the parties who sought to have their expenses reimbursed.

The federal judges ruled that 15 people were entitled to have costs covered.

A bitter dispute among lawmakers had blocked passage of any plan for adjusting legislative, congressional or state school board districts to ensure equal representation.